Blood coagulation is a process by which blood forms stable clots to stop bleeding. The process involves a number of proenzymes and procofactors (or “coagulation factors”) that are circulating in the blood. Those proenzymes and procofactors interact through several pathways through which they are converted, either sequentially or simultaneously, to the activated form. Ultimately, the process results in the activation of prothrombin to thrombin by activated Factor X (FXa) in the presence of Factor Va, ionic calcium, and platelets. The activated thrombin in turn induces platelet aggregation and converts fibrinogen into fibrin, which is then cross linked by activated Factor XIII (FXIIIa) to form a clot.
The process leading to the activation of Factor X can be carried out by two distinct pathways: the contact activation pathway (formerly known as the intrinsic pathway) and the tissue factor pathway (formerly known as the extrinsic pathway). It was previously thought that the coagulation cascade consisted of two pathways of equal importance joined to a common pathway. It is now known that the primary pathway for the initiation of blood coagulation is the tissue factor pathway.
Factor X can be activated by tissue factor (TF) in combination with activated Factor VII (FVIIa). The complex of Factor VIIa and its essential cofactor, TF, is a potent initiator of the clotting cascade.
The tissue factor pathway of coagulation is negatively controlled by tissue factor pathway inhibitor (“TFPI”). TFPI is a natural, FXa-dependent feedback inhibitor of the FVIIa/TF complex. It is a member of the multivalent Kunitz-type serine protease inhibitors. Physiologically, TFPI binds to activated Factor X (FXa) to form a heterodimeric complex, which subsequently interacts with the FVIIa/TF complex to inhibit its activity, thus shutting down the tissue factor pathway of coagulation. In principle, blocking TFPI activity can restore FXa and FVIIa/TF activity, thus prolonging the duration of action of the tissue factor pathway and amplifying the generation of FXa, which is the common defect in hemophilia A and B.
Indeed, some preliminary experimental evidence has indicated that blocking the TFPI activity by antibodies against TFPI normalizes the prolonged coagulation time or shortens the bleeding time. For instance, Nordfang et al. showed that the prolonged dilute prothrombin time of hemophilia plasma was normalized after treating the plasma with antibodies to TFPI (Thromb. Haemost., 1991, 66(4): 464-467). Similarly, Erhardtsen et al. showed that the bleeding time in hemophilia A rabbit model was significantly shortened by anti-TFPI antibodies (Blood Coagulation and Fibrinolysis, 1995, 6: 388-394). These studies suggest that inhibition of TFPI by anti-TFPI antibodies may be useful for the treatment of hemophilia A or B. Only polyclonal anti-TFPI antibody was used in these studies.
Using hybridoma techniques, monoclonal antibodies against recombinant human TFPI (rhTFPI) were prepared and identified. See Yang et al., Chin. Med. J., 1998, 111(8): 718-721. The effect of the monoclonal antibody on dilute prothrombin time (PT) and activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT) was tested. Experiments showed that anti-TFPI monoclonal antibody shortened dilute thromboplastin coagulation time of Factor IX deficient plasma. It is suggested that the tissue factor pathway plays an important role not only in physiological coagulation but also in hemorrhage of hemophilia (Yang et al., Hunan Yi Ke Da Xue Xue Bao, 1997, 22(4): 297-300).
Accordingly, antibodies specific for TFPI are needed for treating hematological diseases and cancer.
Generally, therapeutic antibodies for human diseases have been generated using genetic engineering to create murine, chimeric, humanized or fully human antibodies. Murine monoclonal antibodies were shown to have limited use as therapeutic agents because of a short serum half-life, an inability to trigger human effector functions, and the production of human antimouse-antibodies (Brekke and Sandlie, “Therapeutic Antibodies for Human Diseases at the Dawn of the Twenty-first Century,” Nature 2, 53, 52-62, January 2003). Chimeric antibodies have been shown to give rise to human anti-chimeric antibody responses. Illumanized antibodies further minimize the mouse component of antibodies. However, a fully human antibody avoids the immunogenicity associated with murine elements completely. Thus, there is a need to develop fully human antibodies to avoid the immunogenicity associated with other forms of genetically engineered monoclonal antibodies. In particular, chronic prophylactic treatment such as would be required for hemophilia treatment with an anti-TFPI monoclonal antibody has a high risk of development of an immune response to the therapy if an antibody with a murine component or murine origin is used due to the frequent dosing required and the long duration of therapy. For example, antibody therapy for hemophilia A may require weekly dosing for the lifetime of a patient. This would be a continual challenge to the immune system. Thus, the need exists for a fully human antibody for antibody therapy for hemophilia and related genetic and acquired deficiencies or defects in coagulation.
Therapeutic antibodies have been made through hybridoma technology described by Koehler and Milstein in “Continuous Cultures of Fused Cells Secreting Antibody of Predefined Specificity,” Nature 256, 495-497 (1975). Fully human antibodies may also be made recombinantly in prokaryotes and eukaryotes. Recombinant production of an antibody in a host cell rather than hybridoma production is preferred for a therapeutic antibody. Recombinant production has the advantages of greater product consistency, likely higher production level, and a controlled manufacture that minimizes or eliminates the presence of animal-derived proteins, For these reasons, it is desirable to have a recombinantly produced monoclonal anti-TFPI antibody.
In addition, because TFPI binds to activated Factor X (FXa) with high affinity, an effective anti-TFPI antibody should have a comparable affinity. Thus, it is desirable to have an anti-TFPI antibody which has binding affinity which can compete with TFPI/FXa binding.